Strategic Design & Innovation Projects | Julia Schaeper

Understanding changing needs, creating better services and building lasting innovation capability

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SELECTED WORK ACROSS SECTORS

I work with organisations to understand changing needs and future shifts, identify where innovation can create value and translate strategic ambition into relevant products, services and organisational capability.

My projects span healthcare, energy, public administration, technology, financial services, consumer goods and construction. Together, they demonstrate my work across the innovation process, from foresight, user research and strategic direction to service design, project delivery, governance and building the internal capability to carry transformation forward.

The city hall of Cologne, Germany, with steps leading up to the entrance, flags on the building, and the city's emblem displayed on the side.

Barrier-free digital public services

Public services

For the City of Cologne, I led a digital accessibility initiative to ensure compliance with Germany’s statutory accessibility requirements.
I developed guidelines and concepts to enhance inclusivity by analysing and improving website features. This involved conducting interviews and co-creation workshops with people with disabilities, identifying specific barriers and opportunities for improvement.

A rectangular outdoor device labeled 'techem' mounted on a textured wall near a window, with pipes connected to its bottom.

Climate-friendly heating services

Energy and infrastructure

For Techem, I led research into how heating services could help tenants reduce energy consumption while maintaining comfort and accommodating everyday routines.
I conducted qualitative interviews and observational research to understand the factors influencing heating behaviour. The findings informed a behavioural-change framework and opportunities for developing more relevant, climate-friendly services.

Empty hospital room with a bed, medical monitor, and hallway with signs indicating patient rooms and departments.

Patient-centred healthcare

Healthcare

For the NHS, I helped to establish experience-based design as a practical approach for improving services with patients, families and frontline staff.
I developed methods, resources and capability-building programmes and trained more than 1,000 health and social care professionals. This enabled teams to conduct research independently and translate lived experience into service improvements.

Multiple hands stacked one on top of another, demonstrating unity and teamwork.

Participatory policy design for equality

Policy development

For the Ministry of North Rhine-Westphalia, I supported the development of policy guidance to advance LGBTIQ+ equality, participation and acceptance.
I facilitated participatory workshops that brought lived experience and community perspectives into the policy process. The work translated different needs and systemic barriers into clear priorities and actionable recommendations.

A man with a cap sitting at a desk with a laptop, smartphone, notebook, and pen, recording a podcast with a microphone and webcam in a room.

Ethical AI-enabled digital services

Technology

For Manychat, I co-led a global insight and foresight programme exploring how AI and automation could shape future products for the creator economy.
We conducted research with Instagram-first creators and connected their current needs with emerging shifts in social commerce, communication and platform behaviour. The findings informed product strategy and strengthened internal insight and foresight capabilities.

A person is receiving a medical device or orthopedic brace on their arm from a healthcare professional.

Building patient-centred capability

Pharmaceutical

For Sanofi, I co-created a patient-centred programme connecting patient needs more directly with strategy, service development and value propositions.
I created practical tools, coaching formats and strategic roadmaps to help teams begin their internal innovation work with the outcomes patients wanted to achieve.

Two people in discussion inside an unfinished brick building with exposed beams, seen from behind a brick pillar.

Regenerative construction businesses

Built environment

For UnternehmerTum, I empowered leaders from the German building industry in regenerative leadership through off-site workshops immersed in nature.
This initiative, conducted with various CEOs, fostered environmental responsibility and raised awareness of necessary business model adaptations for a resilient future.

Close-up of syringes and a metal cylindrical object on a tiled floor.

Improving the injection experience

MedTech

For AbbVie, I led research into how patients and healthcare professionals experienced a medical injection device throughout the treatment process.
I conducted detailed interviews to identify the physical, emotional and practical barriers affecting its use. The findings informed opportunities to improve the device, supporting information and the wider service experience.

Older person with gray hair wearing a knit sweater sitting at a table, receiving a vaccination shot from another person with hands and a syringe, in a setting that appears to be a healthcare facility.

Care home improvement programme

Health and social care

For the NHS and Department of Health, I helped develop a national improvement programme based on the experiences of care home residents, families and staff.
I used ethnographic research, interviews and participatory workshops to identify opportunities to improve care and working practices. These insights were translated into a practical toolkit that care home teams could use independently to improve their services.

Cover page of a report titled 'AI Strategy & Operating Model' from Fairstone Bank, featuring governance and operating model icons.

AI strategy and future readiness

Financial services

For Fairstone Bank, I supported an enterprise strategy connecting business transformation, customer experience, AI and the organisation’s long-term growth ambitions.
I combined strategic foresight, governance and organisational design to create the next value company value creation plan. The work translated strategic ambition into concrete goals for technology, service and capability development.

Black and white Adidas running shoe with three white stripes on the side, placed on a plain surface against a gray background.

Sustainable international expansion

Distribution & supply chains

For Adidas, I assessed the feasibility and strategic implications of expanding international shipments into markets not served by its existing operations.
I examined customer demand, operational requirements and environmental impact to identify opportunities and risks. The work combined commercial and sustainability indicators to support more responsible decisions about growth and international service provision.

Infographic titled "Restless Legs Syndrome Patient Journey" showing five steps in the patient process with illustrations of people at each stage, from experiencing symptoms to living with the condition, including challenges and future opportunities.

Designing around the patient journey

Pharmaceutical

For UCB, I mapped the experiences of people living with restless legs syndrome to identify unmet needs across the treatment journey.
I connected patient experiences with existing organisational processes and services. This revealed opportunities to provide more relevant information, practical assistance and complementary support before, during and beyond treatment.

Close-up of a CX Playbook on a desk, with other papers and a laptop in the background, in black and white.

CX playbook & innovation capability

Consumer goods

For Adidas, I developed the first global CX Playbook, helping teams use customer insight more consistently when designing new services, experiences and strategies.
I translated customer experience principles into a practical toolkit of methods and guidance that teams could apply across projects and markets. The playbook supported a wider shift towards more customer-centred decision-making and stronger alignment around changing customer needs.

A person in a white shirt points at a medical growth chart graph on a computer screen, showing age in years on the x-axis and height in centimeters on the y-axis.

Early diagnosis of a rare growth condition

Healthcare

I led user research to improve how healthcare professionals and caregivers recognise the early signs of hypochondroplasia, helping children receive an earlier diagnosis and appropriate support.
I conducted interviews and testing with healthcare professionals to understand barriers to recognition and diagnosis. I translated these insights into practical opportunities and co-created solutions for professional and caregiver audiences, making complex medical information clearer and easier to act on.

A tabletop game about communication and awareness, featuring a circular game board, cards, and a pen.

Commoning by Design

PhD research

For my doctoral research, I investigated how design, systems thinking and the commons could support regenerative value creation and shared organisational stewardship.
I developed an original framework, the Commoning Compass and more than 60 Commoning Cards. These tools help organisations examine how resources, relationships, responsibilities and value are governed and identify opportunities for systemic change.

IMPACT

Making complex change concrete

My work often begins where established approaches are no longer enough: a public service must become more accessible, a technology needs clearer purpose, governance or customer needs are changing or sustainability ambitions have yet to influence everyday decisions.

I help organisations understand the wider system, identify what matters to the people involved and turn that evidence into clear choices, better services, useful innovation tools and the internal structures needed to carry the work forward.

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hello@juliaschaeper.com